Morning Ritual
by Helvetica Ghost
Summary: Sasuke doesn't walk into the office with a coffee cup from a nearby coffeehouse chain. Every morning, he parks in front of Hinata's weird little shop for her special blend of tea. Every morning, she tells him his fortune. Hinata calls herself a witch. Sasuke calls her a part of his morning ritual, until she decides to leave. Witch AU with Kia-B's Ying-Yang Project! One-Shot


**Morning Ritual**

 **the sasuhina witch au. in cahoots with Kia-B's Yin-Yang Project. let's call this Angst Lite™ with some fluff because i can't help myself. not edited im sorry but hey! at least it's long :3**

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It was a hovel. A dingy little thing. The foundation looked like it would crumble if he breathed at it. The windows were webbed with cracks, though they were cleaner now. Hinata did her best to keep her shop clean, since she couldn't afford renovations. She'd even put up some frilly purple curtains. Sasuke thought her efforts to decorate the shop only made it look more haunted, what with the candles lining the crumbling steps and the unidentifiable giant potted plants (the neighborhood kids dubbed them UGP for short) on the landing.

Uchiha Sasuke wasn't a superstitious idiot like the rest of them. No one took the parking spot in front of Hinata's shop out of fear, which meant that Sasuke didn't have to pay for parking at the company's parking lot. If he believed in good luck, then he might have considered Hinata a good luck charm.

Sasuke stepped out of his car and headed up those crumbling steps, past the scented candles, swatting the plant leaves out of his face as he pushed the door open.

"Good morning, Uchiha-san!"

He frowned. Her eyes were usually bright, and they always crinkled at the sides as she smiled. Her skin was always fair, but today she seemed pale, her face drawn and dark under the eyes. Today, her smile didn't reach her eyes. She quietly turned around and busied herself behind the counter.

"The usual?" she asked. Her voice wavered a bit as she spoke.

He cleared his throat and said, "Yes,"

Sasuke might have grunted at her any other morning, but he felt he should practice some tact today. He slid onto the stool and drummed his fingers on the counter. The inside of Hinata's shop was warm and felt like home. The lighting was soft and golden. Her sense of interior design seemed exclusive to weird knick-knacks and trinkets, mostly of the cat-shaped variety. Hinata claimed her wooden counter had been a gift from the Amazonian witches, who had carved it from elder wood and blessed it. Her bar stools were covered in plush purple velvet. Her window sills were filled with more strange plants, though she used these ones for her brews instead of simply decoration. She had a broom in the corner, behind her counter – this one was a gift from her father when she turned of age, made from a juniper tree.

There was a fluffy pink cat bed surrounded by cat toys and stuffed animals, where her fat ugly cat was sleeping. Her name was Pudding. Hinata had told him that she had rescued the cat, and that her original name was Lumpy, which Hinata thought was a mean name. He rolled his eyes.

"You're not going to tell me my horoscope today?" Sasuke said.

Hinata's shoulders jumped. One corner of her mouth curved up. "Um, if you want me to,"

He shot her a flat look. "You read it to me every damn morning, regardless if I want to hear it or not,"

She laughed softly. "Alright then,"

Hinata finished grinding the tea leaves and wiped her hands on her apron. "I'll start with career. Leos should be more mindful of the people they work with. D-Don't hover too much and cut them some slack,"

"Whatever,"

He put his palm under his cheek as he watched her flutter her fingers over cups. She had a set of fine china in the cabinet, as well as a row of hooks for regular customers' cups. There were three cups. One was pink and had little strawberries painted on it. The other one was mint green with flowers on it. Those two were for the annoying women who visited every afternoon. Bubblegum and Ponytail. Sasuke had made the mistake of stopping by during his lunch break. Suffice to say, he made sure to never bump into them.

The first time Sasuke had come in, his cup had been plain and white. The next time, Hinata had excitedly showed him the cup she'd made for him. It was baby blue with a cartoonish black crow on it ("My big brother – w-well, my cousin – he had a crow familiar and he reminded me of you – my big brother, not the crow, I mean!")

"Today is a good day for you to talk to that special someone. Leo's are ruled by the Sun, so share yourself, your energy, and your, uh, w-warmth,"

Even _she_ was dubious about that.

Sasuke was distracted by the shine in her hair. If being a witch didn't work out, she could easily land herself shampoo commercials. It was long and silky, and looked indigo under the right lighting. It went down to her hips and swayed in tandem with them. He often found himself staring and was a bit disturbed to find that he was learning to time himself so that he averted his gaze right before she turned around.

He felt something rub against his leg. "Pudding," he muttered.

The cat meowed and flicked him with her tail before climbing up the steps Hinata had put for her arthritic joints.

"Good morning, Pudding," she cooed. Pudding curled up on Hinata's chair and chirped.

"Pudding says that now is a critical period for your interpersonal relationships. You should remind the people who are important to you that you find your relationships meaningful and fulfilling. Be more sensitive and considerate,"

"Of course, the all-knowing wisdom of a tubby old cat,"

Hinata sighed. "She is very wise, you know. She has a lot of life experience,"

She set his cup in front of him. This was the second reason he was a regular customer. He couldn't find this blend of tea anywhere else. Hinata said it was a secret brew based on his planet alignment. She called it Angelica tea. ("I-It's a blend of ginseng, ginger, and a secret ingredient! They're all masculine sun herbs with fire elements!")

Whatever that meant. She was a conwoman.

"Also, don't work too late tonight. There might be an opportunity to grow in the morning if you sleep properly and wake up well-rested,"

"'Grow in the morning'? Is that sexual harassment?" He waited for her reaction over his cup.

She delivered, with wide pearly eyes and pink cheeks. Ah. Her flustered expression was cute. "U-Um, n-no! I didn't mean it like that-!"

He bit his lip and tried to hide his smile.

Hinata sat down, scooping Pudding into her lap. The cat perked her head up, ears twitching, and started to purr. Hinata absently scratched Pudding's head.

He furrowed his brow at the distant look in her eyes. She looked tired, her posture drooped. "What's wrong?"

It wasn't like he was concerned or anything. He just didn't like looking at her gloomy face. It was disrupting his morning routine, not getting to see how happy she looked to see him.

Hinata looked surprised, a slow smile on her lips. "Oh. I-I was thinking,"

Her eyes started to grow glassy and dull. Sasuke snapped his fingers in front of her face. She blinked.

"Quit spacing out and tell me," he said.

"Did you know there's a beautiful meadow that overlooks the river? Towards the east of Konoha? It's full of flowers. Bluebells and moonflowers. The moonflowers only open at night, though. That's where I first landed when I arrived," She gestured towards her broom. "It took me a long time to travel from my home to Konoha. I remember being completely exhausted. I just laid down on the grass for a while,"

Sasuke wondered if she had a point. He would have been more impatient if not for her dreamy expression.

"Konoha is so beautiful, you know? There's so much sunshine, the weather is so nice, and the plants are really happy here. I was scared to leave home for the first time on my own, but I was excited to put down my roots. Mostly, I-," She fidgeted with her skirt. "I wanted to prove myself to my father, that I could be independent and successful on my own. I-I wanted him to recognize my talents as a witch,"

"Wanted him to be proud of you," he said, his voice low.

Hinata's eyes were warm. "Yeah. I-I didn't want to go back home until I'd accomplished something. But – But now I'm not so sure of myself anymore. I haven't done anything that my family would be proud of,"

Sasuke wouldn't call her business thriving by any means. First, she picked a terrible location. This neighborhood wasn't as receptive of witches and whatever other services she provided. _Odd Jobs Hinata_ , as she called her shop. Second, she wasn't doing enough to advertise her business. He stopped himself there. Hinata hardly had enough money to fix up her dumpy place. He doubted she had the means to do much else. It was the businessman in him that wanted to criticize her.

He'd take that ugly cat's advice this time. "You started your own business. That's an accomplishment,"

Hinata pursed her lips. "Mm. I guess. I just wish I did more. It never feels like I'm doing enough,"

"That's a good thing,"

"What do you mean?"

"If you're not content, then it means you want to keep improving. A business doesn't always succeed from the get-go. You need to constantly improve it and you need the drive to do it. That's better than settling,"

Sasuke studied her expression. He hadn't realized it, but he was searching for a break, like the sun parting the clouds. However, her face only lightened a bit. The heavy clouds were still hanging over her. A sick feeling of dread sank in his stomach.

Her cheeks suddenly went pink. "Um, I-I wanted to thank you, Uchiha-san,"

"I told you to call me Sasuke. I hate formalities,"

"Okay, S-Sasuke. I wanted to thank you for your patronage a-and for coming in every morning. I-I enjoyed your company, so thank you so much. It means a lot to me,"

The sick feeling in his gut intensified. "Why?"

Why did she sound like she was going to disappear? Why did it sound like she was going to leave?

Hinata looked away, burying her hands in Pudding's orange fur. "I wanted to tell you. Just because. No reason,"

Sasuke's hand moved involuntarily towards her. His brain hadn't caught up yet - he was split between pushing her hair out of her face or putting his hand on top of hers. Hinata's eyes met his. They both froze. He slowly lowered his hand and ran it through his hair instead, feeling his frustration simmering under the surface.

"I-It made me really happy that you would come to my shop at all. I don't know if it's pity or if you genuinely like it, but I appreciate it either way,"

"It's not pity," he hissed, his voice tight. His dark eyes traced the teeth chewing her lip, her anxious eyes, her brows pushed up in distress.

"W-Well, thank you, Sasuke," Hinata stood up, avoiding his eyes, and said, "You're going to be late for work,"

Sasuke stared at her back, fighting the urge to turn her around and demand an explanation. He didn't like this overwhelming sense of uneasiness. He wanted to see her face.

"Hinata," he said. So he would.

She turned. His anxiety had him involuntarily memorizing her features. He sighed and this time when he reached out, he grabbed her shoulders and leveled his gaze to hers. "Don't do anything stupid,"

Hinata bit her lip. "I won't."

Sasuke dropped his hands, still feeling the soft wooly material of her sweater and her slight, sloping shoulders. Her reassurance didn't feel reassuring at all.

Sasuke spent his day brooding – more so than usual.

"You alright, man?" Naruto clapped him on the shoulder on his way to his cubicle. "You've been distracted all day. You told Kiba to order lunch instead of attending the board meeting. Then you chewed ME out for not presenting! It wasn't even my project, boss!"

He considered Naruto for a moment. His people skills were exceptional. If Naruto was able to coax Sasuke into a friendship spanning from childhood to adulthood, that was proof enough.

"Hypothetically," he began. "if someone thanked you for being in their life, how would you interpret that?"

His blond brows bunched together. "Uh, that they're grateful to you? That's pretty straightforward,"

"No, I mean –" Sasuke scowled. "what if it sounds…final,"

"Oh,"

"Oh? What the hell does that mean?"

Naruto leaned back and hummed. "Then maybe they're leaving and wanted you to know how they felt before they left,"

Sasuke felt his stomach sink. "I knew it,"

Curious blue eyes peered into his. "Who is it? Who would thank you for being part of their life?" He rubbed his chin. "It wasn't me, so who else could it be?"

"It's none of your business," Sasuke snapped. He sighed at the hurt look on his best friend's face. "I'll tell you later. I'm heading home,"

"Now?" Naruto squawked. "No overtime today?"

"I have something important to do,"

"Hey, are you SURE you're okay? I'm here if you need a shoulder to cry on!"

"Shut up," He raked his hand through his hair. "Thanks."

Sasuke ran, his blazer tucked in his arm, to Hinata's shop. By the time he finished his work, Hinata was usually gone. He found the shop's lights off, the curtains drawn, and no Hinata in sight. It was creepier without the light and her presence there to liven it up.

He didn't understand why he was so worked up. He would miss her tea. He wouldn't miss her nonsense horoscopes. He would miss how warm it was inside, how warm and welcoming she was. He wouldn't miss her stupid cat.

Sasuke forced himself to tear his gaze away from her shop and got inside his car. Hinata would be there tomorrow. Her unusual behavior from this morning would be gone and replaced by her usual cheer. She would serve him his tea, as usual. Pudding would rub against his leg and climb her steps to Hinata's lap. Routine. Nothing would change.

Still, his mind lingered on Hinata's face. He thought she was beautiful. He liked her smile the most. Something unfamiliar ached in his chest.

He slept fitfully. He was unnerved, that heavy feeling in his gut still weighing down like an anchor. Sasuke left the house on autopilot, half-dreading and half-expecting that Hinata would still be there.

There was a paper taped to the door. Sasuke approached, his anxiety growing with each step.

 _Going out of business._

He didn't bother reading the rest of it. It was legal jargon telling him that Hinata couldn't afford to rent her shop. He entered the dark shop. He felt emotionally numb, not caring that her door wasn't locked. All her shelves were empty. Pudding's pink bed was gone. Her plants were gone. Hinata was gone.

On the counter was a small bag. In her girly handwriting, the note on the bag read _Angelica Tea for Sasuke._

He felt the wind knocked out of his lungs. She'd really left.

In a daze, he picked up the bag and went back to his car. He was half-frozen in denial and half-panicked. Sasuke clenched his fingers around the steering wheel. He'd give her more motivational speeches so long as she stayed.

The problem was, he discovered after spending an hour frantically speeding through the street of Konoha, that he didn't know where she lived. He didn't know where she liked to go, or where her friends lived. It deeply unsettled him that he spent every morning with him, yet he knew so little about her. He only knew that her favorite color was navy blue, and that her first familiar had been a monkey. Sasuke gritted his teeth. He regretted not asking her these things before. Hinata was part of his morning ritual. He saw her every morning, had tea with her every morning. His day never went right if he didn't see her. He shook his head. He would find out. Even if he had to go all the way to her witch coven to ask her where she liked to spend her time. He might even admit that he went to her shop on his days off, dressed in his suit, just so she wouldn't think he was going out of his way for her. Which he was.

He quickly sent a text to Naruto. No doubt his employees would be thrilled that the boss was taking a day off.

Sasuke pressed his forehead to the wheel. His eyes were burning from lack of sleep. She'd been right about getting a good night's sleep. _Focus._ Hinata liked pretty things and pretty places. He jerked up. The meadow. The meadow to the east, the first place in Konoha she'd stepped foot in. The one with the flowers.

He broke every traffic rule as he sped towards her. For once, he wasn't thinking at all.

Sasuke didn't have to search very hard for her. Pudding was waiting for him and gave him a look, as if she were expecting him and was tired of waiting. She flicked her tail and started walking ahead of him. He followed.

Hinata had her broom in her lap. She sat amongst the moonflowers and stared out at the water. She was muttering something. The moonflowers were wrapping themselves around her broom. He didn't want to say it was a spell, but he certainly couldn't explain it either. Sasuke's frustration and worry finally boiled over.

"You're running away,"

Hinata turned her head, white eyes wet. His eyes were dark and hard, accusing.

"I failed. I promised my father I would return home if I failed,"

Sasuke's face twisted. "What kind of promise is that? He was expecting you to fail?"

She turned back towards the water and said in a small voice, "He was right,"

"Hinata,"

The way he'd said her name, low and thick with emotion, made her stand up and face him. Sasuke was making an expression she'd never seen. He was always stoic, but now he was being so expressive. It made her face feel hot.

"Don't go,"

Sasuke knew how to charm people, persuade people, manipulate people with his words. Comforting came hard to him. He decided to take her advice to share himself.

"Don't give up. Not when you have so much to prove. You aren't a failure, not until you give up on yourself completely," His hand trailed down her arm and covered her hand in his. It made her look up at him. "Don't prove him right. My dad didn't expect anything from me. When I first started my company, he told me to stop wasting time and work under my brother,"

She was looking at him with sympathetic eyes. He gently squeezed her hand.

"What would you have said if I told you that I was giving up on my company because my dad didn't think I was good enough?"

Hinata chewed her lip, her eyes flickering to his hand holding hers. It was warm and almost covered hers entirely. "I would have told you that y-you were good enough, even if he didn't think so, and that you shouldn't be so hard on yourself,"

He smiled at her. "Couldn't have said it better myself, hm? Give yourself a break. Fall off that horse all you want, Hinata. I'll help you back on it. You have those annoying friends of yours, too," His expression was disgruntled as he said. "It took me a while to realize you can't live without relying on other people from time to time. It's…okay to do that. With me,"

Sasuke rubbed the back of his neck, feeling somewhat agitated. He hated talking a lot, but the look on Hinata's face told him that his usual curtness wouldn't convince her to stay.

She gave him a watery smile. "Th-Thank you,"

"You've already thanked me,"

"I-I mean for encouraging me a-and believing in me,"

"I know," Sasuke sat down and tugged her down with him. Pudding curled up beside them and purred. "You'll stay then?"

Hinata peeked at him out of the corner of her eye, then at their joined hands. She nodded. "Um, so what will I do now? I-I'm unemployed and I can't pay my rent,"

"I could find you a job. You can stay in one of my guest rooms,"

She gave him a weak smile. "M-Must be nice to have financial stability,"

"Very nice," He wanted to smile back. Her face had brightened up considerably. She didn't look like she was going to give up anymore.

"What's your sign?"

She blinked owlishly, then started blushing. "Capricorn,"

"Are Leo's and Capricorn's compatible?"

"C-Compatible? Um, well, although they may seem like an unlikely match, both signs can develop their relationship by discovering their s-similarities-"

Sasuke let her prattle on. She was still blushing. The moonflowers were starting to link together in a frenzied way. Maybe her magic was responding to her feelings? Whatever. He grabbed a flower crown and put it on her head, sweeping his fingers through her silky hair.

"So are we compatible or not?"

Hinata touched the crown gingerly. Her eyes were shining. She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his cheek. "I think so, yes."


End file.
